Typewriting machine



F. H. ARMSTRONG. I

TYPEWRITING MACHINE. l APPLICATION FILED IAII.29. 1919. IIENEwED s'I-:PT.2I, 1929.

l15,437@ 1 5, `PateInted Nov. 28, 1922. l

sam

'Paiied Nev. 2s, 1922.

PRANKKURBRRT ARMSTRONG, or AUBURN, NRW YORK, AssIGNOR To CORONA TYPE- WRITER COMPANY, ING., OF eROTON,l NRW YORK, A CORPORATION OP NEW YORK.

TYPEWRITING MACHINE.

Application filed January 29, 1919, serial Np. 273,789. Renewed september ai, 1920. serial No. 411,814.

T0 a'ZZwLom z'tmay concern:

Be it knownthat I, FRANK H. ARMs'rRONG,

a citizen" of the nited States of America, and a resident of Auburn, county of Cayuga, Statel of New York, have invented certa-in new and useful Improvements in Typewrit ing Machines, 'of which the following is a full and clear specification.`

This invention has relation tothe line spacing mechanism and its object is to provide a'siinple and efficient device for clutching or clamping: the usual line-spacing ra-tchet-wheel to the platen in such manner y that avery secure connection is madebetween the two, so as to thereby provide the greatest `possibleinsu'rance against slippage during regular line-spacing, the construction being such that the ratchet-wheel may be' readily released from the platen yto perinit irregular oi" fractional line-spacing from time'to time. The special objects 'of the prel ferred" construction illustratedin iny drawing are to do away with all actuating springs byy causing the actuating devices to be frictionally held in either of their adjusted positions, and also to do away with the complication and insecurity involved inthe Vuse of jaws which have a biting engagement after'set forth. ln the drawingy IF ig. 1 l is a longitudinal sectional view taken through one end of a platen showing the parts in the position they assume during re lar line-spacing;

ig.`2 is asimilar view showing the parts in position during fractional'or'irregular line-spacing Figs. 3 to 7 are detail views hereinafter described. i

Referring to the drawing annexed by refterence-characters, a designates the usual cylindrical platen, and Z2 the usual platen-shaft 4With the ratchet-wheel, as more'fully herein.-

affixed thereto in the usual manner at thel end of the platen l have not shown in the drawing, and e a part of the. frame of the to forni an attaching flange e provided with holes e through which the fastening-screws e are passed.

Fitted and journaled within the Outer end of the tube d is a rotatable head It, this head being provided Withan inwardl ',uNiiaoy-s'rATi-:s PATENT jor-Fica.

gripped ,by the locking levers z', and with an i outwardly-extending hub j on which is rigidly affixed the usual line-spacing ratchet lc, the extremev Outer end of this' hub being reduced in diameter and journaled in the i frame-member c.

The platen-shaft extends centrally through the head L and has slidingly mounted on it a sleeve Z which frictionally fits the bore of the head la The outer end of the slee-ve 4Z projects beyond the frame-member c and hasafiixed to ita hand-wheel m, the end Of the platen-shaft extending into the body of this hand-wheel and being provided with a head n at its extreme outer end which isr adapted to prevent the hand-wheel and its 'attached sleeve from being slid off the platen-shaftwhen the hand-wheel is drawn Outwardly to its extreme limit; T he handwheel is affixed to the sleeve Z by a setfscrew 0 to permit `the hand-wheel tov be adjusted on the sleeve from time to time to compensate for wear and thus preserve a nice adjustment of the parts. In its innermost adjustment, the hub of the hand-wheel abuts against the outer end .of hub j of the head to thereby affordY a convenient abutment to The inner |end of the sleeve Z extends into an axial rec-ess formed in the platen body and is Yexteriorly bevelled to form a Wedge levers consists of an axially-extendingslightly-springy arm p curved or inclined radially inwardly so as to be engaged by the bevelled surface of the sleeve when the sleeve is pushed inwardly. The forward end of this arm-member p extends into the tube (Z and is bent radially outwardly as well as toward the' end of the platen to form an angular gripping-member g, the radial extension. of this member being sufficient to perinit `the corners of this vangularfgripp-ingf member to pivot at some point, preferably at r, on the interior wall of the shell-tube d,

while the extremity is bent radially inwardly far enough to have a gripping engagement with the periphery of the liub h.

The rotatable head Zz. is held in its proper position in the tube d by means of a shoul-` `der s formed onithe hub j and adapted vto abut against the frame-memberc land by an additional shoulder t which abts agalnst the end of the tube d; butfor convenience in assembling and for holding the rotatable head in the tube d during handling of .the

platen-while off the machine,.I provide lanV thus swing the engaging ends ofthe levers into Contact with the peripheral face of the grip-hub h', therebyirmly locking the rotatable head z. together withv its ratchetwheel to the platen structure. Upon pulling the hand-wheel and the sleeve outwardly, the inner arms' p of the levers will be free to swing radially inwardly far enough to release the grip-hublz. and thus permit the platen structure to be rotated for ir regular or fractional spacing independently of the ratchet-wheel and its attached head, the ratchet-wheel being held against rotation by the usual detent device. It will be understood that the hand-wheel and its sleeve will be held in its outer adjustment or its inner adjustment by the friction of the parts, an actuating spring being thereby rendered unnecessary. The ,pressure of the spring-arms p against the tube, when the tube is pushed in, serves to assist in holding the tube and its wheel magainst creeping outwardly by the jarring of vthe machine.

It will be observed that the relativelyrotatable head L formedwith the two hubs 7L and has a broad bearing on the platenshaft and that this head also is journaled in the frame of the carriage while the end of the platen, through the medium of the -fixedtube (l, has av bearing on the head 71.

The result of 'this construction is that the platen will at all times be maintained in a true central position and also will be substantially supported at the line-spacing end.

It will be observed that my device is exceptionally compact and simple in construction. I not only do away with a spring for normally holding the actuating tube in either its out position or its in position, but I also provide an exceedingly simple arrangement for gripping the ratchetwheel-carrier, this arrangement consisting of a pair of simple levers loosely dropped into place during the assembling of the parts, pivot-pins for these levers being unnecessary and the levers being held in place at all times by the mere placing of the rotatable head in the tube d. It will be observed that the levers are'` so shaped as to lie within the narrowl annular space between the 4periphery of the grip-hub h" and the/adjacent inner wall of thetube al, the outward thrust being taken' up lentirely by the tube d, and the thrust radially-inwardly being taken up entirely by the metal 'mass of the hub 71,', thereby relieving thev platen-shaft entirely of thrust action and thereby avoiding all tendency to unduly It will be ob-v wear the sha-ft or its parts 4or to throw the shaft and the platen out oftrue.

A feature of importance lies in making the tail-end y? of the levers springy, as thereby I not only avoid the use of means for equally' distributing the pressure between the two locking-levers, but I also provide for taking up any wear that may occur by engagement of the levers with the slidin tube. To ensure the levers rotating with the platen at all times, they are arranged to engage in notches o formed in the annular flange e, and the movement of the levers longitudinally of the platen is prevented by said flange e and the inner face of the grip-hub 7L', so that although the locklevers are not positively held by pivotpins, they nevertheless'always remain in operative position. lith this type of locking mechanism, it will be observed that the locking-levers may be made very inexpensively, since they may be readily stamped up from sheet-metal and tempered to give them the slight elasticity or springiness they require. To ensure the most powerful gripping engagement with the hub it', the grippingends of the levers are pronged, as shown,`

so that the points ot each prongffwlg'ljen? gage the periphery ot the hub at points sep'- arated circumferentially.

Thus gripping the grip-hub la. with ajiradially-inward thrust and at virtually Qdiametricallyopposite 'points ensures a; sufficiently powerful gripping action Vto render it virtually impossible to rotate the ratchet-wheel and its carrier independently ot' the., platen .while the gripping-levers are in locking positiorl interior-of the platen-end-tube d and also .that it. terminates short of .the fastening.

flange e thereof, thereby forming an annular space L-shaped in cross-section which communicates lthrough `the noteheswfwith the axial recess in theplaten body. `In these annular spaces loosely lie the looking-levers, which levers are approximately Z-shaped in `orderto fulcrm on the interior of the endtube d and properly grip the grip-hub lo. In Fig. 7, I have shown more particularly the manner Vin which I prefer beveling the inner end of the .tube Z. In this View, the

bevelA is divided into a forward surface Z.

and the rear surface Z, the former being more obtuse than the latter-and serving to quickly spread the lever-arms p when the,

tube is shoved' in, while the other beveled part Z is relatively `acute and serves to receive the pressure' of the levers when.' the tube is shoved home. This longer and more acute beveled surface Z not only prevents the inward pressure of the spring-arms p from tending to. forcegthe-tube axially outward, but also ensures a sufliciently long surface to. provide for adjustment of t-he tube Ainwardly from time to time as the beveled parts Wear.

The natureand-scope of the invent-io having been thus indicated and its preferred embodiment vhaving beenspecifically described, What is claimed as new is: f

l.v In a typewriting machine, a platen, a rotatable head fitted and journaled in the end thereof and. carrying a ratchet- Wheel at its outer side and a' grip-hub on its inner face, within the platen, a slidable spreading member extending through the head and into the platen, and a rocking lever extendingy longitudinally of the platen and operated by said member and adapted to grip the outwardly-facing periphery of said hub, for the purpose seta forth.

2. In a typewriting machine, a platen, a. carrier for the line-spacing ratchet-wheel mounted in the end of said platen and carrying a grip-hub, a pair of rockable grip-levers whose grip-ends engage. the periphery 0f said hub i and whose operating or tail ends extend .axiallyinto the platen and are inherently springy, and a slidable wedge device for springing apart said tail ends of the levers to thus lcause their gripping-ends to grip said hub. A

3; In a typewriting machine, a platen` a line-spacing ratchet-wheel and a carrier thereof, this carrier being provided with a grip-ring, and means for locking the gripring and carrier to the platen embodying a lever having a gripping extremity engaging the periphery of said grip-ring, an inherently springy arm extending axially into the platen, and a slidable wedge-tube -for operating said lever.

4. In a typewriting machine, a platen, a

.gripping-end extending radiall line-'spacing Wheel and a carrier therefor provided with agrip-hub extending` axially `into .the platen, a 'tube connected lto the platen and surrounding said Carrier and said grip-hub, a pair of rocking levers ,each embodying an elastic arm extending axially intothe platen and a radial`arm having .a

l inwardly and adapted -to grip said gripub, andv a' slidable wedge-tube for spreadingapart the elasticfarms of Said levers, for the purpose set forth. l j

5. In a typew'riting machine, a platen having a metal tube in its end,:a' rotatable head fitted in this tufbe and -carrying ,a ratchet-wheel .at its outer end and a griphub at. its inner-` end, and a locking device embodying gripping-ingers'pivoting against the inner face of said tube and exerting a gripping frietional action i against the periphery of said hub'.-

6. In a typewriting machine, a Arotary platen, a' line-spacing ratchet-wheel-carrier 'i rotatably connected thereto, a s lidable'fric.- tionally-held sleeve working through the carrier, and gripping means operated by said sleeve,. said gripping means embodying resilient .lever-arms rvextending into, the platen.. l. 1.

7. In a .typewrit-ingmachine, a rotary platen, a line-spacing ratchet-wheel carrierv rotatably eonnected thereto,a slidablesleeve working through the carrier and havingits inner end annularly beveled', this beveled part being divided into two surfacesgthe one nearestthe end of the` tubebeing more acute inits angle than the other and the latter being longer than vthe formen,y and springy grip-levers vaetuated by said beveled surfaces, 'Or the purpose set fort-h.-v

8. In a typewriting -machine, 'a rotary platen. a line-spacing.ratchet-wheel carrier rotatably connected thereto.l the platen carrying a metal end-tube and the carrier becal gripping portion atits inner end` al rockable lever extending longitudinally ofthe platen and rotatable therewith. and a manually operable member extending through said head and slidable relatively vthereto longitudinally of the platen having a cam surface for engaging one end of said lever and rocking the other end of the lever into eni ,f-agementl with` the gripping portion of said head.' i

10. Ina typewriting machine, the combination ofa platen shaft, a platen rotatable in-unison with the shaft, a hub rotatable relatively to the shaft adjacent one end of 4the platen, a line-space wheel rotatable in unison with the hub, a pair` of sheet metal levers having angular portions at their outer ends and'resilient portions extending longitudinally Within the platen, a sleeve slidable longitudinally on the platen shaft through said hub and having a beveled inner end for spreading the inner ends of the resilient portions ofthe levers apart and thereby rocking the outer ends of the angular portions of the levers into engagement with the pe- .for the line-space wheel rotatable relative to e the platen and provided with a friction surface concentric with the shaft, a lever rotatable with the platen having an arm provided with a gripping jaw at its outer-'end adapted to engage said friction surface and a resilient arm extending axially into the platen, and a manuallyshiftable sleeve slidably mounted on the platen shaft and extending through said carrier into the pla-ten, said sleeve having a beveled inner end adapted to force the inner end of the resilient armof the lever outwardly.-

'12. In a typewriting machine, the combination of a rotary platen, a cup-like metal member rotatable with the platen and set into one end of the platenwith its open end facing outwardly, the inner end wall of said member having a central aperture and a pair of slots extending radially from the edge of said aperture,- a line-space wheel carrier rotatable relatively to the platen formed with a cylindrical gripping portion at its inner end housed within the cuplike member, a line-space wheel' fixed on the carrier, a pair of levers extending through the slots in the inner end wall of said member and having the outer portions thereof within said member extending radially and then outwardly over the perimeter of the gripping portion ofthe carrier, a sleeve extending slidably through the carrier and the central aperture in the cup-like member and having a cam portion for spreading the inner ends of the levers apart, and a finger wheel on the outer end of said sleeve.

13. In a typewriting machine, the combination of a rotary platen, a cup-like metal member rotatable with the platen andset into one end of the platen with its open end facing outwardly, the inner end Wall of said member' having a centralaperture and a pair of slots extending radially from the edge of said aperture, al line-space wheel carrier rotatablev relatively to the platen formed with a cylindrical gripping portion at its inner end housed within the cup-like member, a line-space wheel fixed on the carrier, a pair of levers extending through the slots in the inner end wall of said member and having the outer portions thereof within said memberl extending radially and then outwardly lover the perimeter of the gripping portion of the carrier, a sleeve extending slidably through the carrier and the central aperture in the cup-like member and .having a cam portion for spreading the in' ner ends ofthe levers apart, and a finger wheel on the outer end of said sleeve, each of said levers having a rocking engagement withthe inner surface of the cylindrical wall of the cup-like member adjacent the pointof junction of the radially extending portion thereof with the portion overhanging the gripping portion of the4 carrier when the inner ends of the levers are spread apart.

1-1. In a typewriting machine, the combination of a platen, a cylindrical metal housing fixed in one end of the platen having an open outer end, a line-space wheel carrier having an en larged intermediate portion and means 'extending through the carrier into the. platen and slidable longitudinally of the platen for spreading the inner ends of the levers apart.

15. I'n a typewriting machine, the combination of a rotatable platen, a hub at one end of the platen rotatable relatively thereto, a line-space wheel held to the hub, a pair of levers extending longitudinally of the platen and overhanging the perimeter of the hub at their outer ends, and means, slidable longitudinally of the platen for forcing the outer ends of the levers against the perimeter of the hub under spring tension.

16. In a frac-tional line-spacing mechanism, the combination of a rotatable laten, a coaxial line-space wheel rotatable rellatively to the platen. a clutch member rotatable .with the line-space wheel having a circular peripheral friction surface, a resilient lever extending longitudinally of the platen` and rotatable therewith, and manually shiftable means engaging one end of the lever vfor rocking the opposite end of said lever toward the axis of the clutch member and forcing the same into engagement with the periphery of the clutch member under tension.

17. In a fractional line-spacing mechanisrn, the combination of'a rotatable platen7 a coaxial line-spacingavheel rotatable relatively to the platen, a clutch member rotattable with the line spacing wheel having a friction surface concentric with the axis thereof, a pair of diametrically opposed resilient levers extending longitudinally of the. platen and rotatable therewith, eachof said levers having laterally spaced jaws at one end, and manually shiftable means engaging the other ends of the levers for rocking said levers about axes extending transversely ofl the platen to force the jaws ent gripping means rotatable with the other one of said parts and arranged to exert pressure on the periphery of the clutch member inwardly toward the axis of said member atv circumferentially spaced points, and manually operable means for forcing said gripping means into engagement with the periphery of the clutch member under tension.

This specification signed this 20th day of December, A. D. 1918. y

l FRANK HURBERT ARMSTRON. 

